Between the Rescues
by Tea-Cub
Summary: A collection of short, hopefully humorous stories that take a look at what the characters get up to during those long offduty hours on Tracy Island. PART 3 UP.
1. Master Guitar

Main Title: Between the Rescues

Chapter Title: Master Guitar

Chapter Number: 1

Summary: A collection of short, hopefully humorous stories that take a look at what the characters get up to during those long off-duty hours on Tracy Island.

Author: Brosle-Cub

Disclaimer: Thunderbirds does not belong to me - I heavily grieve this fact.

It is unknown just how many chapters there will be in this story, so I ask you all to keep an open mind. Basically, I was inspired to write this when I started getting all these little scenarios in my head which I had to write about - however, I could not think of any surrounding stories. Then I decided to write this. It will be updated whenever I think of a little scene, but realistically, I'd imagine there will be no more than four chapters at least. Like I said, keep an open mind.

In this chapter, I am open to suggestions about Parker's accent. I was a bit worried about it, and I'd appreciate any good advice on how to improve it.

* * *

Master Guitar

The pool at Tracy Island was the most popular and well-loved place for relaxing and socialising. The cool water was always occupied, and it was also a common notion to sit at the side and read a book, or talk, or sleep, or do whatever one desired on hot days, which were extremely frequent.

But, sadly, it is a well-known fact that there are limits to everything in life, even the wonderfully positive things which bring us joy and happiness.

"Caaaaaallllin' ooout a-rooound the wooorld, are you ready for a braaand neeeew beeeat?"

Yes, believe it. There are limits to bad things and good things - there is only so much that a mere human-being can take. And Gordon Tracy's guitar-playing and 'singing' is not one of them.

Virgil hung his head in his copy of 'Kine', as he wondered how much longer he could prevent himself from smashing his lemonade glass over his younger brother's head in an effort to stop the awful warbling that was preventing him from concentrating. What made the situation even worse was the fact that Virgil was sitting next to one of the most beautiful women of her time, Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward, who was visiting Tracy Island for a week along with her faithful butler, Parker.

"Sorry about this," he muttered yet again to the visiting pair. Lady Penelope nodded graciously.

"You must stop apologising, Virgil. I have seen much worse in my time."

"h'I don' know, M'Lady." Parker, serving her Ladyship a drink, was wearing an expression which mirrored how Virgil was feeling. "h'In all 'onesty, h'I'd rather be involved h'in a car-chase with t'e world's most dang'rous criminals than lissen to that 'orrible banter."

"Yes, thank you, Parker," Lady Penelope said quickly. Virgil, however, was summoning all of his self-control not to jump up and bang Parker hard on the back for his well-chosen comments.

"I wiisssh I could share - all the looooove in ma heeeeeart!" Gordon, wearing shades and his favourite spotty shirt, was settled on the seat-swing nearby, his guitar in hand. Virgil longed to take the guitar in _his _hand and cause some lovely, wonderful pain with it. His fist clenched as he wistfully considered the possibilities and he came to the conclusion that he would rather be back at the atomic station, trying to control the severity of its explosion, than here, having to endure this kind of torture.

Suddenly, the awful sounds stopped. Virgil froze. Was it truly over? Could he get back to investigating the murder with Mr. Kine? Were they all free? He could hear nothing else and finally, he gave a big sigh of relief and was amused to see Parker doing the same thing as the butler seated himself comfortably on the spare lounge.

Quiet.

Total quiet.

Virgil's eyes re-discovered his place on his current page, and a smile starting to return to his lips, the pilot settled down to read.

Then the plucking of guitar strings started anew. The book fell to Virgil's lap yet again, and Parker sat up on his seat.

"Oh, for pity's sake - "

"Ah, naw - "

The two desperate men, allies in their hour of need, looked to one another for help and then one's facial expression turned to that of humour, and the other's to horror, and both looked to Lady Penelope as Gordon started singing the 'Danger Mouse' theme, his voice louder than before. The butler and the pilot were both all too aware of how Penelope felt around mice, and Virgil had experienced a first-seat view of her Ladyship's reaction just a couple of days before, when a member of the species had somehow found its way onto Thunderbird Two whilst Penelope was a guest passenger on there. They noted how tightly she was suddenly grasping her magazine, and her eyes were fixed, unmoving, on the page, which, Virgil suddenly realised, she had not turned for the past ten minutes.

"_What is that awful noise?!?!"_

The group jumped as a whole as Scott approached them, looking as threatening as his swimming-trunks allowed. His eyes immediately fell on Gordon, and he paled when he saw what he was holding.

"Gordon, put the guitar down."

Gordon sighed and rolled his eyes behind his sunglasses. "Ah, come on, learn to live a little."

"You won't be living in a moment if you carry on making that racket!" Scott growled, as in the background, Parker pulled a small flask of whiskey from the inside pocket of his jacket and offered it to Virgil. "What about her Ladyship? Have you not considered her feelings?"

Gordon nodded. "Sure, bro. I'm entertaining."

Virgil and Parker, both taking sips of the whisky, spat the liquid out in unison as Scott desperately tried to keep his arms to his sides, and not where they were itching to go - around Gordon's neck. Oblivious to this, Gordon's fingers strummed the strings yet again, and Scott decided that now would be a good time to go and drown himself in the pool. Exchanging a pitying look with Virgil, the eldest Tracy brother then jumped into the water, splashing the side slightly as the redhead who was perfectly capable of serving as a convict's punishment in several ways opened his mouth to sing anew.

_What was that song I heard on the radio the other week? Oh, yes…_

His hands working that complete lack of magic, the aquanaut absolutely belted the tune out, and this time, both Virgil and Penelope were taken aback by Parker's reaction. The butler had slowly looked up, and there was a fire in his eyes that had not been there before. His lip was set in a furious scowl and his hands twitched with rage.

'_Ow dare 'e violate **that **song! 'Ow dare 'e! h'I can take h'a lotta things, but h'I h'am not goin' to sit by now and watch 'im put **that **glorious piece o' work to shame!_

"Roight," Parker said aloud, "h'It's time summink was done h'about this."

And before anyone could stop him, he had stood up and marched right over to Gordon and when he reached him, stood right in front of the sun. Looking down at the redhead, he waited for him to register his presence - when he did, the sunglasses slid down the aquanaut's nose and amber eyes looked over the rim at him.

"Oh, hi, Parker."

"Sir," Parker said, in what he felt was a calm tone. "h'I was just wonderin'. Do you take requests?"

Virgil and Scott both looked at the butler with ill-disguised terror, and both tried to communicate a signal across to him that said, _No, no, anything but that…_Gordon, however, was pleased, and took his glasses off completely, feeling slightly smug.

"Sure, I take requests." _Hope it's something I know, _he added silently.

"h'In that case, _sir_," said Parker, making the word 'sir' sound like 'worm', "Would you mind h'if we 'ad h'a bit of 'ush? T'ank you."

Confident his message had sunk in, he turned on his heel and went back to where Lady Penelope and Virgil were sitting. All three Tracy brothers present had their jaws open, and Gordon was struggling to put a sentence together in the wake of Parker's unexpected outburst. Scott and Virgil exchanged a look that said everything before bursting into peals of laughter and applause. Penelope, meanwhile, was giving Parker a hard, thoughtful look.

"I never knew you felt so strongly about that particular song, Parker. I can't pretend I'm not surprised - I didn't think you were in to _that_ sort of thing."

"Say wot you must, M'Lady." The butler knew that he was going to pay dearly for his moment of authority, but how could she expect him to stand by and listen to that young idiot mutilate a song that was far too good to be performed by the likes of _him? _

"Do you know, Parker," Penelope replied, still eyeing him up and down, "I think you've just earned yourself the rest of the afternoon off."

Parker blinked, caught off-guard. "h'I - beg your pardon, M'Lady? But wot h'about you?"

Penelope turned back to her magazine. "Oh, I think I can cope. I've good company here." She flashed a smile at Virgil, who hid his reddening face behind his book. Parker looked from one to the other, and deciding that he should take the chance before her Ladyship changed her mind, he practically fled back to the house, tearing off his jacket and tie along the way and startling a passing Tin-Tin.

Scott clambered out of the pool and laughed again at the expression on Gordon's face. "You weren't expecting that, were you, champ?"

"Not really," the redhead mumbled, trying and failing to swallow his humiliation. Scott, chuckling, went to occupy the spare lounge, making a mental note along the way:

_Ensure Parker gets triple helpings tonight._

_Fin. _


	2. Laika on Leash

Main Title: Between the Rescues

Chapter Title: Laika on Leash

Chapter Number: 2

Summary: A collection of short, hopefully humorous stories that take a look at what the characters get up to during those long off-duty hours on Tracy Island.

Author: Brosle-Cub

Disclaimer: Thunderbirds does not belong to me; is that fair? No it is not!

Regarding this chapter - I know it's not canon, Alan naming his alligator Laika, but it's not impossible, and I thought it sounded quite appropriate. And yes, I'm revisiting a former fanfiction joke here - I hope you enjoy.

* * *

Laika on Leash

Scott Tracy was content. He had a drink. He had a book. He had even dug a ready-made chocolate ice-cream out of the fridge. He was sitting in a lounge, sunglasses on, ready to soak up some of the wonderful warmth after a morning down in the laboratories with Virgil and Brains, working over some modifications for Thunderbirds 1 and 2.

An itch in his eyes prompted Scott to sit up, take the sunglasses off and rub at the aching area. When his vision had cleared, he looked around briefly and then paused when he saw what was coming his way.

"Hey, Virgil," he nudged his brother, who was dozing in the lounge next to him. Virgil roused and sat up, yawning.

"W-what's wrong, Scott?"

Scott gestured over to the right; Virgil, following his line of vision, stared and then started.

"Gordon, what are you doing?"

The redheaded Tracy brother glanced in his direction as he approached. "Just taking the alligator for a walk, Virg." He watched as his two eldest siblings stared at each other warily, before Scott thrust his cone into Virgil's hands and stood up, looking extremely businesslike.

"Okay, Gordon. Whatever you're doing, whatever you're planning, why don't you just put it on hold, alright? We're both exhausted from a tedious morning."

Gordon blinked. "What makes you think I'm planning anything? All I'm doing is taking Laika for a stroll."

Oblivious to the fact that Virgil was licking his melting cone behind him, Scott glanced down at the female pygmy alligator, secure on a thick black leather leash that was attached to her neck and belly, and then back up at Gordon.

"Since when did we start taking Laika for a stroll?"

The aquanaut raised an eyebrow. "Since last night, when I took over desk duty for a while whilst Dad went to get something to eat and I called Alan only to receive demands that I take Her Royal Scaliness here to see more of the island. He wants to make sure she's settled in - remember she's only been here a couple of weeks."

"What if she snaps the leash with her teeth?"

"She won't, there's flexible metal inside the leather; this little baby isn't going anywhere."

"Well, that's something. Just keep an eye on her." Scott turned back to his lounge. "Virgil - hey, Virgil, give me back my cone!"

"Don't blame me; I'm a mere human, defenceless against temptation." Virgil reluctantly handed the chocolate treat back as Gordon picked up Laika somewhat gingerly and moved away from the two pilots to where Brains was sitting, staring intently at a chessboard.

"Hey, Brains."

The scientist looked up. "Oh! Er, h-h-hi, er, G-Gordon. I-I've been h-hoping to, er, t-t-talk with you."

"Gordon?"

The redhead glanced around to see John, currently indulging in a little bit of pool-time fun, eyeing his younger brother's reptile companion somewhat nervously from the water. Gordon sighed again and put the alligator down.

"You're safe Johnny, I won't let the eeeny-weeny tiny pygmy alligator go for you."

"Don't mock me." John had never been the hugest fan of underwater creatures, and Alan's new pet didn't exactly help to put his fears at rest. It was just how he felt, he had reasoned with himself many a time. Everyone needed to be scared of something, right?

Gordon shook his head at the man who, as a boy, he'd always thought had not been afraid of anything. Of course, that had all changed when he was seven-years-old and the newts he had gathered and smuggled into the house had broken loose. Sitting down opposite Brains, he watched as the bespectacled man checkmated himself, before turning his attention to his friend.

"R-right, er, Gordon. I want you t-t-to l-look at, er, some blueprints that I, that I, er, drew up with Mr T-Tracy."

"Go on, Brains."

"Okay," was his stuttered reply. "I - I've, er, been thinking that, f-following what happened on the, er, the Ambro R-River - "

"You mean the giant alligators?" Gordon couldn't help glancing across at John, currently doing laps in the pool as he said this.

"Um, y-yeah. B-basically, we're considering m-maybe putting, er, some kind of special animal t-tranquiliser on the nose of Th-thunderbird Four."

Gordon nodded thoughtfully. "Could be a good idea. It would allow me to put any obstructing underwater creatures out of action, just for a while - "

"Gordon - "

"Not now, Scott," the redhead threw over his shoulder, before continuing in his conversation with Brains. "Like I said, I would be less distracted and troubled under the water if you could - "

"Gordon - "

"Wait, will you, Scott! - could put one of those babies on my Thunderbird, Brains."

Brains nodded eagerly. "Th-that's what I, er, thought, G-Gordon. Y-your father was telling me that he, er, he doesn't want to have t-to cause any u-unecessary animalistic m-massacres."

Behind them, Scott and Virgil were getting desperate to grab their brother's attention and Virgil quickly decided to try and succeed where Scott had failed.

"Gordon, could you just -"

Gordon, caught up with Brains' latest and greatest idea, sighed and again threw his reply over his shoulder. "Look, I'll be there in a moment, just give me a second here, will ya?"

"But - "

"In a moment! Sorry, Brains - er, yeah, I don't particularly want to cause any animal bloodshed, especially to my fellow underwater creatures." The redhead gave Brains a grin. "But I'd say go ahead with it. It sounds a great idea."

"_Gordon, will you please - !"_

"G-good." Brains smiled, pleased that his plan was approved of. "H-hopefully, it can, er, become a-a more st-standard part of, ah, the, er, equipment."

"And give rise to the fact that International Rescue is an extremely moral organisation!" Gordon rubbed his hands together jubilantly.

"GORDON!" This time, Scott and Virgil shouted together, their heads swivelling around to look at John in the pool. Startled by the shouts, Gordon looked down at his hands, saw that Laika's leash was no longer attached to them and swore so badly that Brains thanked the heavens that Grandma Tracy wasn't around just then. Then pandemonium broke out.

"Where is she? Where is she?"

"We don't know, Gordon, she raced off. Calm - "

"Why didn't you tell me what was happening?"

"We tried!" Virgil glared at him. "But you wouldn't listen! You were so caught up in listening to Brains that you didn't notice your grip loosening on the leash."

"Don't blame me, I'm a mere human!" Gordon barked at him before putting his head in his hands, doing his best to think. "Right, look around. We've gotta find her!"

"Er, f-fellas," said Brains' hesitant voice behind them, "I, er, I-I think I kn-know where she, er, she is."

As Gordon spun around to look at him anxiously, Brains pointed into the crystal clear pool water. Staring into its depths, Gordon felt a surge of relief when he saw Laika, having the time of her life, her small bulk swimming around underneath the surface…

… Relief that turned to horror when he saw John swimming in her direction, oblivious to what had joined him in the water.

"Oh, no," Gordon murmured and he started to take his shirt off, but no sooner was it over his head than a sound reached his ears which told him John had been made aware of Laika's presence.

_"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRGH!"_

* * *

It never failed, Jeff concluded, sitting at his desk, watching the scene in front of him. Having spent a good part of the day sipping coffee and pouring over reports that were based around the Thunderbird craft and therefore important to International Rescue, he had not had much time to relax. So when he had begun to sense that he had almost completed his work, he switched from coffee to good cold lemonade, and his mother had brought him a plate of cookies from the kitchen. Now that the last report had been filed, Jeff had been looking forward to some peace and quiet in the privacy of his own lounge. Of course, that was before chaos had broken out, and it would have to involve his sons. 

_It definitely never fails, _he thought resignedly, as he took in the messy huddle of his four boys, noticing in particular how Gordon was at the front, John was at the back, and Scott and Virgil were in the middle, arms outstretched between the two of them. Add a lot of shouting and the odd swear-word, and Jeff knew for sure something had happened out at the pool, and he knew it had happened at the pool because John had his towel wrapped around his waist.

"Alright, alright, that's enough," he called out, to little effect. _"I said enough!"_

The authority in his voice stopped the Tracy brothers in their tracks and Scott took advantage of the sudden silence to push John's hands away from the direction of Gordon's throat.

Jeff took a deep breath before speaking. "OK, now, what's happened, boys? Virgil, could you tell me?"

"Yes, father," the artist said quickly. "Basically, Gordon took Laika for a walk, she escaped from him and got into the pool."

"While I was in it!" John cried, looking and sounding absolutely beside himself. Jeff raised a hand.

"Calm down, John. Now, did the alligator do anything to you?"

"Just take a look for yourself!" John sharply unwrapped the towel around his waist, and Jeff was able to deduce, from the lack of swimming-trunks and the knowledge that this particular son did not skinny-dip, what had happened in the water.

"I see. OK John, don't worry. As long as you didn't get hurt - it's only a pair of swimming-trunks."

"No, but my pride has been severely dented!" Now slightly calmer, John ran both hands through his damp hair and let out a breath of air. "I never, ever want to go through that again."

"John, she's just a small pygmy alligator," Jeff said in reasonable tones. "Nothing to be afraid of."

"That's what I told him," Gordon piped up, rather daringly in the circumstances. Jeff turned to him, determined to keep the peace because he knew for a fact that even John could severely lose his temper.

"Gordon, what's happened to the alligator?"

Gordon blinked back at his father. "What do you mean what's happened to Laika?"

"I mean - you put her back in her enclosure, didn't you?"

Four pairs of heads whipped around to look at one another, then Gordon's hands flew to his mouth as realisation hit him hard and fast.

"No - she's still in the pool!" Cursing, he raced back out of the lounge as Jeff's hand slapped his forehead in exasperation.

"Ah."

John shook his head. "I don't mean to whinge, but if he doesn't catch that thing…"

The Tracy patriarch cut across him. "He will if he wants any dessert tonight - Grandma doesn't exactly relish the idea of her on the loose anymore than you do. Now you go and get changed into some clothes, John."

_Nope, it never fails, _he decided yet again, watching his blonde son leave the room, _No matter when you get the chance to relax, something always crops up._

_And if Alan has that alligator, by the looks of things that's going to happen a lot more around here…_

_Fin._


	3. Living Space

Main Title: Between The Rescues

Chapter Title: Living Space

Chapter Number: 3

Summary: A collection of short, hopefully humorous stories that take a look at what the characters get up to during those long off-duty hours on Tracy Island.

Author: Brosle-Cub

Disclaimer: Thunderbirds doesn't belong to me. Note the tears.

Sorry about the delay, but inspiration was a bit slow for this one. I had to do a bit of research and found out that Galaxy chocolate is actually called Dove in the USA, and that Cadbury Dairy Milk is sold, but Hershey is more frequent. Thanks to Tikatu for all her help with the chocolate queries.

* * *

Living Space

Virgil looked up from the piano, slightly startled. The eyes of Alan's portrait were flashing on and off, on and off, accompanied by a familiar high beeping noise. Virgil immediately stood from his stool, walked over to the desk and pressed the button which opened communications between Tracy Island and Thunderbird 5.

"Go ahead, Alan." He sat behind the desk, ready to take over authority in his father's absence, however temporarily. His blonde baby brother appeared live on the portrait, and Virgil noticed immediately that he was frowning.

"Hi Virgil. Is John there?"

Virgil shook his head at the question. "No, sorry, Alan. He's gone to the mainland for the day with Tin-Tin and Brains for a shopping trip." He winced slightly as Alan's frown appeared to deepen at the mention of John going off with Tin-Tin, even if Brains did happen to be there as well. Virgil knew from experience that Alan felt very protective of Tin-Tin, and had even teased him about it in the past - but something told him that this was no teasing matter.

"Is everything okay up there?" he hastened to add.

Alan gave a huffy reply, "Just tell John thanks so much for not leaving any Dove chocolate in the fridge up here."

Virgil blinked, having expected something much more serious. "Sorry - beg pardon?"

"Dove chocolate, Virg, what they call 'Galaxy' in the UK and what you and Scott live on half the time, so you should understand my own situation. There's none left up here, it's only Cadbury Dairy-Milk and Hershey!"

Virgil rubbed the back of his neck as his right hand crept under the desk to find the alert button which summoned his father up to the lounge. "Well, uh, that's not so bad," he tried consolingly.

"Not so bad? Virg, I have cravings. I just went on my break up here, thinking that some Dove chocolate would hit the spot, and what did I find? Two tonnes of Cadbury and Hershey, sure - "

"But no Dove, huh?"

"No!" Alan was practically wailing now. Virgil was starting to feel slightly sorry for him. Clearing his throat slightly, he took a deep breath.

"Well - you do know we can't just pack up Thunderbird 3 with all the Dove chocolate possible and bring it up, don't you? I mean, if you were missing some kind of vital necessity, like food or toiletries, then we would, but - "

"Oh, I know."

"Then… why are you calling?"

"Well, I can't exactly complain to people calling us for help, can I?"

"I guess not," Virgil said, grinning slightly at the mental picture. Then he heard the door slide open, and Jeff Tracy looked in, dressed in a relaxed blue shirt and beige shorts. Virgil immediately stood to greet him.

"Hi, father."

Jeff nodded, looking alert, before making his way across to the desk and taking over communications with a, "Hi Alan, what's happened?" Virgil bit his lip, wondering how his brother would explain the situation.

"Oh, father, I was just calling base to let you know that everything's running smoothly up… here…" Virgil, initially impressed at his brother's quick imitation of authority, was caught off-guard at the sudden hesitance in Alan's voice and looked to his father. Then he saw the problem, which in this case served in the form of the clearly visible, half-eaten Dove bar in his father's right hand.

_Oooooooooohhhhhh **dear.**_

"I-I know you like to be informed of things, and - well, I-I was on a break, so I thought I'd just… check up on things at home."

_Come on, bro, don't let it bother you! _Virgil mentally willed. Alan could talk his way in and out of many things and could always be extremely convincing at the drop of a hat - that was until Grandma Tracy, the Walking Lie Detector and Tracy Island's very own one-woman jury, got involved. However, even without the senior Tracy present, Alan was not doing very well in the charm stakes as his eyes kept straying to the chocolate in his father's hands. But what he managed to stammer out seemed to have the desired effect: Jeff was looking slightly surprised, but pleased.

"Oh, well, thanks, Alan. Well, things are okay here too - Scott and Gordon have gone for a run around the island and John, Brains and Tin-Tin have gone to the mainland for a well-deserved shopping-trip." He fidgeted with the chocolate bar slightly, running his fingers up and down it absently, while he was speaking to his youngest son and Virgil remained tense. Alan, however, rather impressively in the circumstances, managed to smile and nod.

"Good, well, I'm mighty glad to hear it. I'd, ah, better go now - there are some reports up here that I, er, I promised Brains I-I'd work on."

Virgil rolled his eyes and shook his head, realising that when Alan said that, he probably actually meant he had to do some much-needed screaming. _Glad I'm not up there at the moment - sheesh, I'd hate to be the TB5 equipment right now._

"Okay, Alan, thanks again for calling," Jeff was telling his youngest son, "It's always good to hear your voice, especially on an off-duty basis."

Alan gave a very fixed grin. "That's alright, father. Ah, give my regards to everyone there. Over and out." The live portrait switched to a still one again and Virgil gave a sigh of relief.

_That was a close one._

* * *

John, Brains and Tin-Tin returned from the mainland in the early evening, in time for dinner. There was a lot of unloading to be done, a lot of details about the trip to be told and a lot of outfits and accessories to show and to give, especially where Tin-Tin was concerned. It wasn't until half past nine, when Virgil had resumed his place at the piano, that he finally remembered his earlier conversation with Alan. Casting a longing glance at the keys, he then got up, went to John's room and knocked on the door, hearing a friendly, 'Come in' from within.

"Hi, Virgil," John, reading one of his favourite books on the bed, gave him a grin. "Come to snag one of my newly-purchased shirts?"

"Now there's an offer I can't refuse," Virgil glanced somewhat enviously at the new clothes in the wardrobe, "But thanks for the comfy new sweater, you got just the right size."

"No problem." John rolled off the bed and stood up straight. "So, what can I do for you?"

Virgil quickly recounted the conversation he had had with Alan earlier in the day. John stared at him, slightly gob smacked at what he was being told, and he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly as Virgil finished.

"That was my fault, I'll admit it. I had the last Dove bar the night before I came home - various radio transmissions were keeping me awake and I guess I was kinda looking forward to coming back to the island. But is he really taking it that seriously?"

"This is Alan we're talking about, John."

"Ah yes. Answers my question."

"Yes. Now, what are you going to - "

"Hold on." John's head suddenly snapped up, and he turned to look at his neatly-arranged CD-case. "Give me a second." He quickly went through the CDs in the wooden case, checking the names on their sleeves, before crossing the room to his bag, stacked on the shelf and rifling through it.

"Darn it! It's not there!" The blonde threw the bag back on the shelf and scanned the room, suddenly seemingly oblivious to Virgil's presence until his brother tapped him firmly on the arm.

"John, what are you looking for?"

"A CD," John said distractedly, going to examine his desk.

"What sort of CD?"

"One of my albums by Universal," John replied.

"You still listen to that group - "

"Or at least I would if I could find the CD - drat! I must've left it on Thunderbird 5... Where there is no Dove chocolate thanks to me…" John blanched as he made the connection.

"And if Alan finds the CD, he'll know it's yours and he'll be sure to take revenge," Virgil finished grimly. John looked to his brother for help.

"What can I do?"

Virgil counted off the options on his fingers. "One - you take off for Thunderbird 5 in Thunderbird 3 this very minute with a peace-offering and risk Dad's wrath on your return. Two - you call the space-station right now and beg and plead. Three - you go on the Internet and order another one."

The homing space-monitor eyed his brother warily. "You don't think my CD's safe, do you?" The piano-player shook his head and John immediately dashed from the room, heading, Virgil presumed, for the lounge and he decided to follow. By the time he arrived, John had already opened up communications with Thunderbird 5 and was trying to talk Alan around.

"Yeah, I found the CD earlier," Alan was saying, sounding rather smug. "I'm sure the waste-disposal could find room for it."

"Alan, leave it alone, and I'll make sure there's Dove chocolate up there every month from now on," John tried to pacify him.

"Hmm - I don't think so," Alan teased. "You do understand a boy's cravings, don't you?"

_Boy? He sounds like a pregnant female the way he's going on, _Virgil thought, listening to the conversation from the sidelines. John, however, was determined to do or say anything that would ensure the safety and preservation of his CD-album.

"Yes, I understand your cravings Alan, and I respect them, and I will ensure that they are satisfied from now on, I promise."

Alan remained silent. John sighed and rubbed his forehead.

"And I'll lend you my red sweater that you like so much."

"Hmmm…"

"… And I won't tell Grandma the truth about the wedge of swiss-roll that mysteriously went missing in the middle of the night."

"Well…" Alan was starting to weaken. John gritted his teeth.

"I won't tell the others about the glue on the exercise bike."

Virgil immediately pricked his ears up. "What was that?"

John rushed on, flushing, and decided to try and force himself to make the ultimate sacrifice.

"And any time you want it, I'll lend you my star-shaped cushion."

Virgil was distracted from his query about the exercise bike as he watched the big grin which spread over Alan's face, signalling that he was finally won over. "Done! Your CD is safe with me."

John breathed a great sigh of relief, a sentiment that Virgil couldn't help but share. "Good, thanks, Alan. You promise?"

"Cross my heart and hope to die. And John? Thanks." With that, Alan closed down the communications and Virgil was left shaking his head at his sibling, who had sat back in his father's empty chair at the desk and was now massaging his forehead.

"You sure know how to talk him round, John. But that was some sacrifice you made just then."

John's hands supported the back of his head as he looked up at the ceiling. "Virgil, if my CD comes back un-Alaned, it'll be worth it."

* * *

A few weeks later, Alan was packing his bag, ready to return to Earth later that afternoon. Looking around the quarters, he spotted John's CD, 'Universal: Sun, Stars and Moon' on the shelf, where he had stashed it after promising its well-being. Taking it down, he dusted it off, and then placed it on top of the chest of drawers by the door so that John could see it when he came to replace Alan.

Then a sudden thought struck the astronaut - he hadn't checked or tidied the small kitchen department as of yet and glancing at his watch, he decided to kill the some time by freshening it up so that it would be ready for John's arrival. Reaching into the bottom drawer, he took out a dustpan and brush and deciding that the wastepaper bin would be more handy for this kind of job, he picked it up from the floor before sweeping out of the room.

After doing all the clearing necessary, Alan took the bin back to his room and placed it back down next to the chest of drawers. Placing the dustpan on top of the drawers, and unintentionally on John's CD, he looked around the quarters and noted a few last bits of rubbish, which mainly consisted of big purple chocolate bar wrappers and various dusty specks and spots on the shelves. Sighing, he took hold of the dustpan and brush yet again - but as he picked the two implements up, he knocked John's CD which was underneath into the wastepaper bin, where it landed on top of all the rubbish inside with a soft thud which was not heard by Alan as he moved away. Ignorant to the danger his brother's CD was in, he collected the last of the rubbish and not looking at what had been added to the load in the bin, he dropped the last additions into it and then stood back and stretched.

"Right… best get this in the waste-disposal unit…" Picking up the bin, he then walked into the main communications-centre of Thunderbird 5 and located the unit. Pressing a button, he watched as the hatch slid back, and then tipped the contents of the bin inside until it was completely empty. Then he pressed the button again to close up the hatch.

"All done," he beamed to himself, oblivious to what he had just thrown away, and he marched back to the quarters with the empty bin, only realising when he put it back down that the surface on the top of the chest of drawers looked curiously empty.

"Hey, I wonder where John's music has gone…"

_Fin._


End file.
